A former NFL player who turned actor Carl Weathers has passed away. Weathers, who starred as Apollo Creed in Rocky films, “died peacefully in his sleep”, according to a statement released by his family.

Carl Weathers played boxer Apollo Creed in the “Rocky” franchise, going toe-to-toe with Sylvester Stallone in some of cinema’s most memorable — and bloody — boxing moments.

He died at 76.

Weathers, who also starred in the 1987 film “Predator,” opposite Arnold Schwarzenegger, was recently seen on the small screen in “Star Wars” spin-off series “The Mandalorian,” a role for which he won an Emmy.

“We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Carl Weathers,” his family said, according to Deadline.

“Carl was an exceptional human being who lived an extraordinary life. Through his contributions to film, television, the arts and sports, he has left an indelible mark and is recognized worldwide and across generations.”

The statement gave no cause of death, but added that he had died peacefully in his sleep on Thursday.

Weathers’ career spanned five decades and included over 75 appearances in movies and TV, beginning with the so-called Blaxploitation films of the mid-1970s.

Younger audiences have thrilled to his role in the Disney+ hit “The Mandalorian” in which he played Greef Karga, the head of the Bounty Hunters’ Guild, who grows close to lead Pedro Pascal over the course of nine episodes.

Weathers also had a voice acting role in another beloved franchise when he played Combat Carl in 2019’s “Toy Story 4.”

He received plaudits for his turn as a golf coach in “Happy Gilmore,” where he took to tutoring Adam Sandler after leaving the pro tour when he lost his hand to an alligator.

But it was as the jingoistic heavyweight champion Apollo Creed, who stood in the way of Stallone’s rough-and-ready Rocky Balboa, that he will be best remembered.

The 1976 film “Rocky,” which spawned a number of sequels (and which has been rebooted through its “Creed” spin-off franchise), gave the world a brutally choreographed close-up look at the world of championship boxing.

The film’s underdog-against-the-odds archetype combined formidably with cinematic violence to create an instant classic that still resonates almost half a century later.

The climactic scene, which features blood, broken bones and slow motion punches, set the standard for fight films.

It also set Stallone on the path to movie mega-stardom.

Weathers reprised his role as Apollo Creed in “Rocky II” in 1979, which saw a rematch against Balboa.

He was back again for 1982’s “Rocky III,” and again for a final outing in 1985’s “Rocky IV,” in which he was killed in the ring by a Russian heavyweight played by Dolph Lundgren.

Fellow “Predator” actor and former Minnesota governor Jesse Ventura said the world had lost “an icon.”

“Carl Weathers was a phenomenal talent, a true professional, and a dear friend,” he wrote on X, the former Twitter.

“He was a beloved brother, father, grandfather, partner, and friend.”

In a video posted on Instagram, fellow Rocky star Sylvester Stallone said Weathers was “an integral part of my life, my success… I give him incredible credit”.

“I never could have accomplished what we did with Rocky without him. He was absolutely brilliant,” Stallone added in an emotional tribute.

In an interview with the Detroit News last year, Weathers called himself a “lucky guy”.

There are so many people that came before me who I admired and whose success I wanted to emulate, and just kind of hit the benchmarks they hit in terms of success, who created a pathway that I’ve been able to walk and find success as a result,” he said. “And hopefully I can inspire someone else to do good work as well.”

“I guess I’m just a lucky guy.”

Born Jan. 14, 1948, in New Orleans, Weathers played a variety of sports including boxing, football, soccer, wrestling and gymnastics. He played football in college at San Diego State University and helped the Aztecs win the 1969 Pasadena Bowl. While at SDSU, Weathers also pursued a degree in theatre arts, but in 1970 he signed with the Oakland Raiders as a free agent, and he played in eight games in the NFL as a linebacker across two seasons.

After his stint in professional football, Weathers pivoted more seriously to acting, landing small roles in Arthur Marks’ blaxploitation movies “Bucktown” and “Friday Foster,” as well as TV series including “Good Times,” “Kung Fu,” “Cannon” and “Starsky and Hutch.”